Teen accused of impersonating officer arrested again

No bond for Matthew Scheidt

A teenager who became famous after he was arrested near Orlando and charged with impersonating a physician's assistant at a hospital there was arrested in South Florida after being accused of impersonating a police officer.

Matthew Scheidt, 18, was arrested on Miami Beach early Thursday morning and booked into the Miami-Dade County Jail.

He bonded out of jail, only to be arrested a second time, hours later.

Osceola County detectives obtained a grand theft felony warrant Thursday afternoon, related to the theft of an Osceola County radio Miami Beach police said Scheidt was using to impersonate an officer. It was that warrant that led to the most recent arrest.

Thursday morning police said Scheidt was on South Beach in car outfitted to with equipment that mirrored an unmarked police cruiser, including a laptop computer attached to the dashboard. Scheidt drove up to an intersection near Washington Avenue and Lincoln Road and inquired why the man behind the wheel of a car next to him wasn't wearing his seatbelt. The teen did not realize he was talking to a real undercover Miami Beach police officer.

The real officer asked Scheidt if he was an officer with Miami Beach police.

"He told the officer 'yes'", said Miami Beach Detective Juan Sanchez.

However, the real veteran officer did not recognize Scheidt's face and attempted a traffic stop. The teen's story quickly changed after police founded a loaded .38 calibur handgun in a holster underneath his seat. Tasers, handcuffs and radio equipment were also found along with a badge from the Osceola County Sheriff's Office with a department-issued ID to match.

Osceola deputies said the badge is a fake, but the ID card is authentic. Deputies said Scheidt got the ID from when he was part of the Explorer Program in 2010.

Scheidt was in the Explorers Program from 1997 until he was terminated from the volunteer program in 2010 for violating policies. The Explorers Program is a volunteer program for teens and young adults, ages 14-21 and allows them to work with law enforcement and the community.

He was supposed to give his badge back upon graduation. Deputies said Scheidt told them he had lost it.

Osceola county deputies said he was terminated from the program in 2010 for violating policies.

The other items are believed to have been obtained by Scheidt himself and not from other law enforcement agencies, deputies said.

Scheidt, who spent the night in jail, was first arrested in Central Florida in September 2011 after being accused of pretending to be a physicians assistant and nurse. At the time, investigators found the then 17-year old with hospital badges and uniforms. It was later learned that Scheidt examined several patients in an Osceola County hospital before being caught. Scheidt is still awaiting trial on those charges.